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Might and Magic Wiki:Canon
Canon is a term used to define material in Might and Magic lore which can be considered official; any material unified under the canon is accepted as "true" within its fictional universe. On the other hand, non-canonical material is apocryphal, and should be considered "false" in an in-universe context. Among other things, the Might and Magic Wiki strives to act as an unofficial bible to the lore of the series, primarily focusing on conveying "true" materials over "false" ones; as such, it is necessary to define what constitutes the official canon of released media. Policy on canon Universes As of now, the Might and Magic series is divided into two distinct canons, or universes: the original universe and the Ubisoft continuity.Heroes V Development Diary #1: Revamping the M&M universe Any lore-related article which cannot be categorised under either of these settings is deemed non-canonical. Non-canonical material can be identified by this template: The exceptions to this rule constitute articles covering the lore of games in the King's Bounty series, which are deemed King's Bounty canon. Neither New World Computing nor Ubisoft has explicitly commented on the issue of canon in the series - therefore, the term is strictly unofficial, used on a provisional basis by the Might and Magic Wiki to easily determine which aspects of the series should be true and which are false. All official products in the series are deemed canonical by default, although some of the official games have been designated non-canonical for various reasons. Status of specific media ''Might and Magic RPGs'' All lore contained within the nine core Might and Magic RPGs should be considered definitively canonical, with no exceptions. ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' The official campaigns included in all seven core Heroes games and their expansion packs are considered definitively canonical (aside from the campaigns of Heroes II: The Price of Loyalty, which do not make reference to either official universe), including their scenarios, events and related material (such as manuals). Inversely, all single scenarios and multiplayer maps included with the Heroes games and Desecrated Lands, official or not, should be considered non-canonical. Heroes of Might and Magic V is an exception to this rule: its official single-player maps are clearly set in Ashan, and are therefore canonical.Heroes of Might and Magic V. Ubisoft/Nival. (All official single scenarios, in English). 2006. The Heroes Chronicles are deemed part of canon, including both downloadable episodes. The Game Boy Color remakes of Heroes I and II do not contain storylines relevant to the original universe,Interview with Maranthea at Portals of Might and Magic and are considered non-canonical, as are Heroes of Might and Magic Online and Might and Magic: Heroes Kingdoms.Comments for Clash of Heroes HD Coming to XBLA and PSN The lore introduced by the Heroes IV and V card games, created by DGA Games, is not considered canonical. ''King's Bounty series'' King's Bounty and Heroes of Might and Magic: Quest for the DragonBone Staff are not explicitly set within the official universes nor the same canon as King's Bounty: The Legend and its expansions. Nonetheless, the lore of the three games is grouped under King's Bounty canon. Spinoffs Legends of Might and Magic and the Ardon series explicitly take place in the original universe: Legends, Dragon Rage and Shifters are considered canon. However, only the PlayStation release of Crusaders of Might and Magic and the PlayStation 2 release of Warriors of Might and Magic are considered canonical. Equally, Dark Messiah of Might and Magic and Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes (and their multiplatform ports Elements and Clash of Heroes High-Definition) are canon, occurring within the Ubisoft contiunity. All three published novels in the Might and Magic series are considered canonical. While the game of Arcomage is canonical, the lore of the standalone title based on the game is not considered as such, nor are Gameloft's Might and Magic games for mobile platforms (Might and Magic Mobile and its sequel). Deciding what is considered canon Cancelled entries Explicit storyline details regarding unreleased or cancelled entries in the series, such as Might and Magic: The Worldcrafter, are scarce. However, any such details should be considered non-canonical by default, unless there is reason to assume otherwise. Remakes Remakes or reimaginings are not typically straightforward in terms of canon. If the remake is directly commissioned or authorised by Ubisoft (as in the case of the Dark Messiah scenario), it may be considered canonical. Multiplatform releases If a game is rereleased on multiple platforms, its status in canon may be debatable. For instance, only the PlayStation 2 release of Warriors of Might and Magic is considered canon, whereas both the original Dark Messiah of Might and Magic and its XBox 360 port, Elements, are canonical. Multiple outcomes Most of the Might and Magic games have linear or obvious storylines and outcomes. In general, articles assume that a player has completed each quest or mission, optional or otherwise, successfully (i.e. without mentioning death or defeat, unless such events are included as part of the story). Heroes II: The Succession Wars, Might and Magic VII: For Blood and Honor and Dark Messiah of Might and Magic each have multiple possible storylines, with equally credible endings. In the cases of Heroes II and Might and Magic VII, later installments in the series confirmed that Roland's campaign and the events of the Path of Light are canonical. As such, the events of Archibald's campaign and the Path of Darkness are considered non-canonical, albeit with some exceptions. The true ending to the events of Dark Messiah has not been confirmed (although Heroes Kingdoms assumes Sareth released Kha-Beleth and Urgash), and relevant articles should be written with this in mind. Time Questlines in the Might and Magic series and most scenarios in the Heroes series can literally take an infinite amount of game time to complete - centuries if needs be. For convenience of canon, articles on the Might and Magic Wiki should assume that the player completed their goal quickly, within a reasonable duration. This policy is primarily justified by Might and Magic VII, which reveals that the events of Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven took roughly half a year to complete in canon,[http://web.archive.org/web/20001017212754/http://www.3do.com/products/pc/mm7/story/story.htm Might and Magic VII lore ("The Diaries of Archibald'")] and by various sources relevant to the Heroes games: Might and Magic VII divulges that Heroes III's events lasted three years, and Jeff Spock stated that the storyline of Heroes V lasted only a year or two.Interview with Jeff Spock and Richard Dansky at Celestial Heavens Jokes Some deliberately non-serious or out-of-place material included in canonical games, such as easter eggs or obvious whimsy, should not be treated as canon (or only dubiously so): for instance, the NWC Dungeon in Might and Magic VI, or Plate from Heroes V. Fanmade content The Might and Magic Wiki covers some highly noteworthy fan-created projects; however, all are currently deemed non-canonical, regardless of whether their storyline and setting complements or contradicts one of the Might and Magic universes. This applies even in cases of "ascended projects" (such as Might and Magic: Swords of Xeen, which was created by fans and eventually published by The 3DO Company). The Ubisoft Seal of Approval accolade does not supersede this rule. External material When relevant to lore, interviews with personnel who have contributed to the series should generally be considered part of canon, as is any external material officially supporting a canonical storyline, such as Tales from the Swamps or the Chronicles of Ashan. Chain of precedence In the event of an irreconcilable conflict between canonical sources (such as the true forename of Lord Ironfist), the wiki uses a simple chain of precedence used to determine which source is "truer" and used in articles: *In general, a storyline, interview or comment is given maximum precedence if written by personnel who worked on a the lore of a core game in the series (such as Jon Van Caneghem, Tim Lang, Terry Ray or Jeff Spock). *Core games (the numbered Might and Magic RPG or Heroes iterations and their expansions) take a lower level of precedence, with newer games considered more definitive than older ones. In other words, newer games can "retcon" their predecessors. *Spinoffs and novels written by other authors, such as Might and Magic: The Sea of Mist (by Mel Odom) or Clash of Heroes (by Dan Vader) are considered less definitive. *All other material is given the least level of precedence, and discarded if a "stronger" source exists. Irreconcilable conflicts are rare, however - ideally, articles should accomodate all resources and present information without reserving judgment on its precedence. When the conflict cannot easily be resolved but is not necessarily irreconcilable, the article should take note of the clashing sources, and allow readers to use discretion and decide for themselves which is strictly correct. References